Our favorite vehicles
CBT’s annual ranking shows the truck is still most popular, but high-gas-mileage cars gaining ground
There are more Toyotas, GMs and Fords on Boone County roads than ever before, each with about 1,000 more vehicles in the past year. But it’s the South Korean-based Hyundai, which also makes the Kia models, that has seen the fastest growth, up 18 percent from 2006, according to property records. The two fastest-growing models among the top 30, however, are domestic: the Ford Escape and the Ford Focus.
To offer a snapshot of vehicles that local residents own, CBT examined more than 100,000 personal property records in Boone County for the 2007 tax year. Our analysis focused on personal ownership, so the results exclude leases and ownership by companies with six or more vehicles. Personal property records for 2007 won’t be finalized for three years, which means these statistics are slightly understated due to late declarations and payments.
While the popularity of smaller, fuel-efficient cars continues to grow, Boone County still loves its trucks. Five of the top 11 models are pickups.
The Ford F Series pickup remains our county’s most popular model—helped, no doubt, by the line’s longevity. The oldest Ford F Series on record in Boone County dates back to 1948. The other top-four vehicles—Toyota Camry, Honda Accord and Ford Taurus—held the same positions as last year. The Chevy Silverado replaced the Ford Ranger for fifth place.
Analysis of which models grew the most in the past year suggests a preference for small cars and SUVs with reputations for fuel efficiency. Models with the greatest growth from last year were the Saturn S Series (135 percent), Honda Pilot (34 percent), Hyundai Sonata (32 percent) and Ford Escape (31 percent). Residents also own 147 Toyota Prius hybrid cars.
The most popular 2007 models, according to the initial reports, were the Toyota Camry, followed by the Chevrolet Silverado and Tahoe and the Ford Escape and Focus.
Ford F-Series: Boone County’s most popular vehicle
Chevrolet Silverado: Boone county’s No. 2 truck, outselling Ford F-Series
Toyota Camry:
No. 1 in current popularity
No. 2 in ownership
2008 Ford Escape: fastest growing domestic models
2008 Ford Focus: fastest growing domestic models